Placard support for tank cars



June 18, 1929.

W. A. TAYLOR ET AL PLACARD SUPPORT FOR TANK CARS Filed Dec. 15, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet ylor $1 87 June 18, 1929. w. A. TAYLOR Er AL PLACARD SUPPORT FOR TANK CARS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 15, 1927 ll l H w um 3 RN M. R

gmwntocs 7113101 VL It abtomwq Patented June 1 8, 1929.

- UNITED STATES PATENT orries, 5

WILLiAM A. TAYLOR Ann COLUMBUS M. GIDLEY, or BURGER, TEXAS.

PLACARD'SUPPORT FOR TANK CARS..

Application filed December 15 1927. Serial N0. 240, 2 80.

This invention relates to devicesfor supporting placards upon cars, and particularly for supporting placards upon tank cars showing whether or not the tank car is filled, or in other words contains inflammable material, and while the, invention is particularly designed for use with tank cars transporting gasoline and other highly inflammable and volatile liquids, we do not wish'tozbe limited to this use as the same device might be used upon cars for supporting placards for other purposes. I

The general object of the present invention is to provide a placard supporting member and a fixed shield, and providemeans whereby the placard supporting member may be disposed in position behind said shield and entirely obscured thereby as, for instance, when the car does not contain inflammable material, or whereby the placard may be shifted into a position in front ofsaid shield, thus entirely obscuring the shield but displaying the placard stating that the car does carry inflammable or explosive material.

A further object is to provide meanswhereby the first named placard may be locked in either of its adjusted positions, and provide means whereby theplacard may be concealed in this position so as to prevent any unauthorized tampering with the placard.

A further object is to provide a device of this character including a support adapted to be attached to the running board of a tank car, provide a fixed shield mounted upon the support, and provide a movable-placard sup: port rotatably shiftable from a position occulted by the shield to a retracted position and then movable into a position in advance of the shield and'then rotated to a position directly in front of the shield. 1 7

Our invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein 2+- Figure 1 is a front elevation of a placard support constructed in accordance with our invention and displaying fixed placard or shield; a

Figure 2 is a side elevation: of the struc ture shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a rear elcvationot the structure shown in Figures 1 and 2;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary section showing the connection of the rock shaft to the placard-supporting arm;

Figure 5 is a front elevation of the structure shown in Figure 1 but with the removplacard able placard disposed in front of the fixed Figure 6 is a like view to Figure 2 but showing a different position for the movable placard; e i i shown in Figure 6; g

F lgure 8 is a fragmentary detail elevation Figure 7 is a rear view ofthe structure of the lower endhof the placard -supporting arm 19."

Referring to these drawings, it wlill be seen that 10 designates a supporting bracket which is somewhat U-shaped'in form and has its arms depending. one of these arms 11 .is relatively short. The other arm 12 is relatively longer than the arm' 11 and at its lower end is inwardly bent, as at 13, and then upwardly extended, as at'l l. ,This bracket 10 has riveted to it orotherwise attached to it the plates 15 which are designed to fit against the bottom of: the running board 01 a tank car and be attached thereto by riveting, bolting or any othersuit'able means. I

Riveted upon the upwardly extending portion 14 is a laterally and upwardly curved extension 16 which extends upward nearly to the level of the top of the bracket and then extends laterally as at 17. This extension is welded to a plate 18 Whichforms part of an.

upwardlyextending supporting bar 19. The upper end of the extension 16 and the plate 18 are both formed with arelatively large aperture 20 extending through these two members. Riveted to the vertically extending bar 19 is the shield 21' which is prefers ably square in form,'though-not necessarily limited to this form, and is disposed with two corners of the square in .a vertical line. It will be seen that the bar 19 is rigidly engaged with the member 16which forms an extension of a portion 14: of the bracket, the extension being riveted to this portion 14 by the rivets or bolts 22. l i

Oscillatably mountedinthe portions 11 i shield 21 and which is riveted to the arm.

V I the Opposite side of the Of course, we do not wish to be limited to the material of the "shield or of the placard. The arm 27 below the shield carries the inwardly; projecting pin 29 which, when the arm 27. confronts the arm or bar 19, will enter the aperture 20 previously referred to and acts as a locking bolt.

Attached to the rear or inner face of the portion 12 of the bracket 10' is a downwardly,

laterally and rearwardly curved supporting rest 31 which extends downward to a point slightly below the pivotal center for the arm 27 Extending through the portion 12 of 'of a coiled spring 33 which surroundsthe shaft 23' and bears at one end against the portion 12 of the bracket 1.0 and atthe other end against awasher 34, this washer being heldin place by a cotter pin 35. z The shaft 23 is formed with two apertures 36 and 37 and a pin 38 is adapted to be disposed in either of these apertures.

In the use of this device,assuming that the placard 28 is disposed behind'the shield 21 and 'that'it is desired to display the placard 28, thenthe'pin'88 is removed and the shaft 23, pushed inward sufficiently far to carry the pin 29 then be rocked in a counter-clockwise direc- V r tionto' swing the arm 27; and the placard 28 downward until the arm rests upon the support 31. At this time the placard 28'has moved entirely beyond the shield 21 and the shaft may be pulled forward or allowed to move forward under the action of the spring 33. When it is moved sufficiently forward, 7

the shaft is'again rotated, this time in a clockwise direction, which carries the placard 28 up in front of the shield 21, as shown" inFigure 2.: The arm 27. cannot move for ward any faster than is permitted by'the curved supportBl, but when the arm 27 has reached a vertical position the pin 29 will be directly opposite an opening 20 formed in the portionl2 of the bracket 10 and the pin 29will enter this opening 20 and again lock the placard in a vertical position, this time 7 with the placard entirely obscuring the shield. lVhen this has been accomplished the pin 38 may be then" again inserted through th'eiopening 36, which will prevent inward movement of the shaft, and thus pregvent the placard supportingarm from being removed from its locked position. Preferably the portion'll of the bracketis formed with an aperture39, as is theend of the pin 38, through whicha sealing wire may be 7 out of locking engagement with the aperture 20 in bar 19. lhe shaft may passed so as to lock the pin 38 inplace against accidental removal.

It will be understood that while we have referred to the part 21 as a shield and the part 28 as a placard that this is merely to I differentiate between these two elements but that, as a matter of fact, the part 21 will also constitute a placard or sign and will preferably have thereon words denoting that the car is empty, while the placard 28 will have thereon words denoting that the car isfull. These signs might be, reversed, however. The point is that when the member 28 is behind the member 21, the member 21 will be displayed whether this member 21be en tirely blank upon its face or contain signs or symbols, and that when the member 28 is shifted in front of the member 21, the member 21 will be occulted and if there are any signs or symbols upon the member 28 these will be displayed;

It will be seen that we'have provided very simple means whereby one or the other of two placards may be displayed and locked in this display position, that thisplaoard apparatus may be readily operatedfrom the side of the car, and that the placard device fully complies with the law regarding the placarding of tank cars or cars carrying'explosive materials. IWhile preferably the elements 21 and 28 will be made of metal as, for instance, thin sheet metal which is flanged at its margins, we do not wish to be limited to this. The signs, symbols or other directions may be painted upon these elements or printed matter may be pasted.

thereon l/Vhile we'have illustrated certain details of construction. and arrangement of parts which have been found to be particularly efiective for the purpose intended, we do not wish to be limited thereto as many changes might be made therein without departing from the spirit thereof as defined in the appended claims.

1. A sign support for railway ears comprising a supportingbracket, a shield rigidly supported thereon and extending upward therefrom, a placard mounted upon the bracket for oscillation in a plane parallel to the plane of the shield or for bodily movement at right angles to the plane of the shield, and manually operable means for oscillating said placard into or out of a position confronting the shield, said means oemanuallyshiftable toshift the placard at right angles to the plane of the shield.

2. A sign supporting device for railway cars comprising a bracket, a shield rigidly supported upon the bracket and extending vertically upward therefrom, a shaft extending through the bracket and below the shield, said shaft'being longitudinally movable through the bracket and rotatably mounted therein, and a placard mounted upon and carried by the shaft, and means for locking the shaft with the placard disposed behind the shield or in front of the shield.

A sign supporting device for railway cars comprising a bracket, a shield rigidly supported upon the bracket andcextending vertically upward therefrom, a shaft'extending through the bracket and below the shield, said shaft being longitudinally movable fromthe bracket and rotatably mounted therein, a placard mounted upon and carried by the shaft, and means for locking the placard against oscillation when in a position either behind the shield or in front of the shield.

4-. A; sign displaying device for cars comprising a bracket adapted to be mounted upon a car, a shield extending upward from the bracket and rigidly engaged therewith, a supporting bar for the shield having an opening, the supporting bar for the shield being spaced from the bracket and the bracket having an aligning opening, a shaft passing through the bracket below the shield, the shaft being longitudinally and rotatably movableiin the bracket, a placard mounted upon the shaft and movable therewith both laterally from the shield and in a plane at right angles to the plane of the shield, the

placard including a supporting arm havmg a pin insertible into the opening of the armsupporting shieldor into the opening of the bracket, and a spring urging the shaft in a direction to shift the pin on the placard arm into either one of said openings.

5. A sign displaying device for cars comprising a bracket approximately U-shaped in form, one of the arms being extended below the other arm and then extended rearward and upward, a shield mounted upon said upwardly extending arm, a shaft pass-- ing through the bracket to one side of said upwardly extending arm, the shaft being rotatable and longitudinally shiftable in the bracket, a placard mounted upon the shaft for rotational movement from a position in alignment withthe shield to a position out of such alignment or vice versa and being movable with the shaft from a position be hind the shield to a position in front of the shield, and means for locking the parts vith the placard in a position of alignment with the shield.

6. A sign display device of the character described comprising a bracket, a shield, a rock shaft passing through the bracket and having a handle at one end, the opposite end of the rock shaft carrying a placard supporting arm, the shaft being longitudinally shiftable through the bracket or rotatably shiftable therein, a shield supported by the bracket with its center disposed vertically above or disposed in line with the shaft whereby the shaft may be rotated to shift the placard into a position of registry witlisaid shield, the placard "being I thus movable b the shaft from a position behind the shield to a position out of registry'with the shield, then. to a position in front of the shield, and again to a posit-ion in registry with the shield or vice versa, and resilient means locking the parts in either of said positions.

7. A sign supporting device for cars comprising a supporting bracket, a shaft passing therethrough and having a handle at its forward end, a spring urging said shaft forward, an arm mounted upon the rear end oft-he shaft and carrying a placard, an arm fixedly mounted upon the bracket and extending upward therefrom and carrying a shield the same size as the placard, means carried by the arm for locking the placard and arm against lateral movement when the placard has been turned into registry with the shield either in front of the shield or behind the shield, said means being actuated by a forward movement of the shield and its supporting arm dueto the spring acting on said shaft.-

8. A sign supporting device for cars com prising a supportingbracket, a shaft passing therethrough,andhaving a handle at its for ward end, a, spring urging said shaft forward, an arm mounted uponthe rear end of the shaft and carrying a placard, an arm fixedly mounted upon the bracket and ex-' tending upward therefrom and carrying a shield the same size as the placard, means carried by the arm for locking the placard and arm against lateral movement when the placard has been turned into registry with the shield either in front of the shield or behind the shield, said means being actuated by a forward movement of the shield and its supporting arm due to the spring acting on said shaft, and releasable means for locking the shaft from inward movement against the action of said spring.

9. A sign display device for tank cars comprising a supporting bracket having depen'ding front and rear arms, the rear arm being longer than the front arm and having an upward extension at its rear end, a shaft passing through the arms of the bracket, a spring urging the shaft axially forward, said extension being out of line with the shaft to permit the shaft to be shifted past the plane of the extension, a sign mounted on said extension, an arm mounted upon the shaft, a sign carried by the arm and adapted to be swung by an oscillation of the shaft into or out of a position of registry with the first named sign and shifted into position in front of or'rearward of the first named sign by a longitudinal movement of the shaft, a pin carried by said arm, the rear arm of the bracket and the arm of the fixed sign being apertured for engagementby said pin Where w rn...

Cir

by to lock-' the shiftable sign in its fully shifted positions. v

10. A sign display device for tank cars comprising a supporting bracket having front and rear depending arms, the rear arm being longer than the front arm and having an upward extension at its rear end, a-shaft passing through the bracket and oscillatably and longitudinally movable therein, a spring urging the shaft axially forward, said extension being icurved to extend around the path of movement of the shaft, a sign rigidly mounted upon the extension, a second sign mounted upon the shaft and adapted to be swung by the shaft into or outof registry.

with the first named sign, the second named sign being movable longitudinally with the shaft, stops with which the swinging sign engages at the end of its lateral movement, and means for locking the shaft against lon gitudinal movement.

11*. A "sign display device comprising a support, a vertically disposed shield rigidly mounted upon the support and extending upwardtherefrom, a manually sh ftable sign shifting means mountedupon the support for movement in longitudinal and transverse planes, a sign rigidly mounted upon thesign shifting means and extending upward therefrom and movable by the sign shifting means into or out of a position in advance of or rearward of the shield and shiftable by the sign shifting means into or out of a position of registry with the shield, and means for locking the movable sign in either of its fully shifted positions.

12. A sign display device comprising a support, a. vertically disposed shield rigidly mounted upon the support and extending therefrom, a manually shiftable sign shifting means mounted on the support for movement in longitudinal and transverse planes, a sign rigidly mounted upon the sign shifting means and movable by-the sign shifting means into or out of position in advance of V or rearward ofthe shield and shiftable by the sign shifting means 111150 or out of a posltion of registrywith the shield, the sign,

sign shiftingmeans into or out of a position in advance of or rearward of the shield and shiftable by the sign shifting means into or out of position: of registry with the shield. In testimony whereof we hereunto afiix our signatures.

WVILLIAW A. TAYLOR. COLUMBUS M, GIDLEY. 

